Breakups and Pain
by Kiki Warbler
Summary: Rick realizes just what a fool he's been.


_I…I came here by day, but I left here in darkness_

_And found you, found you on the way_

_And now, it is silver and silent, it is silver and cold_

_You, in somber resplendence, I hold_

"That's it! We're done!"

Phoebe Forrester yelled over the phone to her boyfriend of two years, Rick Forrester. Rick was in Paris, France preparing for a photo shoot. He'd been there for almost two weeks, and was virtually out of contact with everyone. He suddenly popped back up onto the radar, and by this time, Phoebe was pissed.

"No, Phoebe, don't over react baby, please?"

"You went AWOL for two weeks Rick, what does that tell me? That you were out screwing around on me!"

"Phoebe, I swear I wasn't!"

"I've seen the pictures Rick! We all have! You're with Ava!"

Ava Majors was the lead model for the Brooke's Bedroom line. Rick's mom's lingerie line was the second biggest selling line for Forrester Creations, and Rick was overseeing the fashion show and photo shoot there. He ran his hand through his hair and sighed. Ava was sitting on his bed, and she was getting dressed. Rick tried not to look at her. They'd been doing this for the two weeks he'd been there, but he tried telling himself it wasn't because he didn't love Phoebe. He loved Phoebe with his whole life, but she wouldn't take the next step with him.

"I am not with Ava, Phoebe. Those pictures were taken a year ago, even before we got together! Honey, you're the one I've given my promises too."

"Your promise means nothing to me, Rick! Nothing! Have a nice life, ass!"

She said, hanging up the phone. Rick looked at the phone in his hand and shook his head. From her vantage point, Ava knew she should take this opportunity to get the third richest man in the world into her life. She was only after his money, but he turned to her and with ice in his eyes glared at her.

"Get out. Don't come back. Oh, and Ava. You're fired."

He said, as he shoved her out the door. He walked out behind her and just started walking. He didn't know what to do, or where to go. He just needed to walk. He walked along Champs-Elysees, towards the Louvre. He just needed to think. He thought about how pretty the area was, and how much Phoebe would love it. He couldn't stop thinking about her. He took a picture of them out of his wallet and looked at it he shook his head. He wasn't going to give her up without a fight. He'd make her see just how wrong about him she truly was.

_Your sins into me_

_Oh, my beautiful one_

_Your sins into me_

_As a rapturous voice escapes, I will tremble a prayer_

_And I'll beg for forgiveness_

_(Your sins into me) Your sins into me_

_Oh, my beautiful one_

Phoebe looked at the pictures on her desk. They were of her and her twin sister, Steffy, her and her brother Thomas, and several of her and Rick. The latest of which being they were at a pool party for his sister, Hope. They didn't have any reason to be mad. He'd come up behind her and wrapped his arms around her and his mom took the picture. She'd made a comment about them, and Phoebe thought about that comment.

"_You two are the happiest couple I've ever seen. Don't let anything come between you two."_

She'd wished Brooke could've been right. She wanted so much to believe Rick, but when Taylor had come to her carrying the proofs of the photos that she'd seen them kissing, and it was the last straw. She couldn't escape the pictures that she'd seen. She looked at the batch she had of them on their desk. They'd been watching a movie, and he took a picture of them snuggled together on the sofa. That was her favorite picture of them together because it was so random and solidified their relationship perfectly. She wanted to throw the pictures against her office wall, and be done with them, but she couldn't. She picked up her phone and dialed Rick's number and listened as it went straight to voicemail.

"It's Rick Forrester, leave a message. I'll call you, eventually. Just not right away, I don't do callbacks right away, it's tacky."

And she waited for the beep. She started speaking, and she just let the words flow. She vented to his voicemail, and showed her anger. She slammed down the phone and smiled at herself for doing a great job of telling him how she felt. She stood up and went down to the cafeteria and grabbed a magazine from the rack and looked at the pictures that were there. She stared at them, poring over the details of the article and making sure the photos weren't doctored. She noticed something in one of the pictures, and she took it to Rick's sister, Felicia's office.

"Fee, how long has Rick had the Forrester family crest?"

"He doesn't. Eric hasn't given any of the male children the crest yet. Kristen got it when she married Tony, and then I got it right after I made EVP. Why?"

Phoebe put the magazine down on the table and Felicia had rolled her eyes. But when Phoebe pointed to Rick's hand, Felicia picked it up and looked at it. Phoebe sat down in the chair across from her, and she looked at it.

"He's wearing the Forrester family crest."

"Yeah, I know."

"That's not possible."

"Yeah, I know."

"Which means…"

"Which means I just made the biggest mistake of my life, Felicia, when's the Forrester plane leaving next?"

"Anytime you need it. Why?"

"I'm going to Paris. I think I need to fix a mistake."

She said, running out of Felicia's office. She needed to make things right, before it was too late.

_Light, like the flutter of wings, feel your hollow voice rushing into me_

_As you're longing to sing_

_So I…I will paint you in silver, I will wrap you in cold_

_I will lift up your voice as I sink_

"Rick, it's me. I know that you think you've got some kind of a hold on me, but you don't. Not anymore. You hurt me in ways like you couldn't even imagine! And you know what else, Ava can have you. Because you weren't even that good in bed. And I'm sorry, but you aren't even a nice guy-"

And then the message cut off. He deserved that message. Everything she'd said was probably true, but he didn't care. He felt his phone vibrate again. He looked at it and saw that he'd had a text message from Felicia. He'd rolled his eyes and opened the phone and read the message.

"Pictures in magazine were doctored. Phoebe's coming to Paris."

This was the best news he'd heard. He texted his thanks to Felicia, and then went back to the hotel. He didn't know if he should be happy, but he was. He knew that things were going to change with them, but he didn't know how. He opened the door to his hotel room and saw Ava sitting there on the bed.

"I thought I kicked you out…and then fired you."

"You did, but it was in anger of losing your girlfriend. Come on Rick…get back into bed with me."

Rick knew that sixteen and a half hours with a refueling in London was a long time. He could nail Ava, and then kick her out, make the bed, and await Phoebe's arrival. She'd never know the difference. So, he did. He stayed with her over night. And then they fell asleep. He heard the lock catch in the door and threw the blankets over Ava. He looked at the clock. Phoebe would be arriving in four hours. He went and peeked out and saw the maid letting Phoebe in. He cussed out loud and woke Ava up. He was glad that his room connected with hers, because she wouldn't have to go through the hallway. He handed her the clothes and watched as she'd walked away. He put on pajama pants and quickly made the side of the bed that Ava was on and climbed in to make it like he were sleeping. He heard Phoebe thank the maid, and make her way towards the bedroom. She opened the door and saw Rick sleeping there. She smiled at him, and went to move the hair out of his face. But just as she did that, she noticed the pair of lacy thong panties staring at her. They clearly weren't hers, but Rick was sleeping. She checked the other side of the bed and noticed he was alone. Rick fake yawned and looked at her.

"Hey, Bright Eyes…when did you get here?"

"Just now. Hon, who's are these?"

She said, holding the panties up on her fingertips. Rick was caught in his lie. He had nowhere to go. He was sinking, and he couldn't lie to her. The look on her face, the pain in her eyes were clearly evident.

"Ava's."

And then Phoebe dropped them and walked into the lobby. She turned to Rick and shook her head, and then looked at him one last time.

"Two years. Two years I loved you…and this is the thanks I get?"

She said, walking out. And that's when Rick knew that he'd messed up, and big time.

_Your sins into me_

_Oh, my beautiful one, now_

_Your sins into me_

_As a rapturous voice escapes, I will tremble a prayer_

_And I'll beg for forgiveness_

_(Your sins into me) Your sins into me_

He followed her down the hallway and grabbed her elbow. He turned her to look at him and he sighed. He knew that she was angry with him. He knew that he'd royally screwed up with her, and he needed to fix it.

"Take your hands off me, Rick."

"No, Phoebe…I've got to explain."

"Explain what? Why Ava's lingerie was in the hotel room…I flew sixteen hours to come here and tell you how truly sorry I was. And I find Ava's lingerie in the hotel room? What am I supposed to think?"

"That we did a photo shoot in the shower, and she changed in here."

Phoebe looked shocked. She jumped to conclusions about it, and it hurt her. She didn't realize that Rick was lying to her. Of course she didn't. She was blinded by love. She didn't see Ava sneak into her hotel room either, and she went to Rick and hugged him.

"I'm sorry I didn't believe it…"

And then she sniffed him. He'd smelled off. Not like Axe Chocolate and Cotton Candy that she was used too. He'd smelled different. Like a combination of another woman and sex. He didn't know what she was doing, and quite frankly it scared him.

"Bright Eyes?"

"You smell funny."

"Funny how?"

"Off. Like another woman. It's a very French smell."

And suddenly it all came together for her very quickly. French lingerie, French perfume. There wasn't a photo shoot in the bedroom, there was a woman. A tall blonde woman and it pissed her off.

"No. No Rick. I am not going to let you lie to me. I know Ava was here. And the fact that you're lying about it, makes it that much more difficult to swallow. Did you sleep with Ava?"

"Yes."

"Was it recently?"

"Yes."

Phoebe shook her head and walked away from Rick. She knew that she had to move on with her life, and that's when she got the idea.

_Cold in life's throes, I'll fall asleep for you_

_Cold in life's throes, I only ask you turn away_

_Cold in life's throes, I'll fall asleep for you_

_Cold in life's throes, I only ask you turn_

_As they seep…into me, oh, my beautiful one, now_

_Your sins into me_

_Oh, my beautiful one_

_Your sins into me_

_As a rapturous voice escapes, I will tremble a prayer_

_And I'll beg for forgiveness_

_(Your sins into me)_

_Your sins into me_

_Oh, my beautiful one_

She flew back to Los Angeles with him hot on her heels. She knew what she was going to do. Once she got to their apartment, she started throwing his things off the balcony and watched as it landed fifty feet down. She saw him standing there, yelling at her.

"Phoebe, don't do this!"

"I want you out of this apartment! NOW! And the only way to do that, is to get rid of your stuff."

She said as all of his stuff went flying out the window. She came across the bottom drawer and that's when she saw it. There was a ring box in the far left hand corner. She reached for it, but she hadn't heard Rick come into the apartment. She opened the ring box and gasped. The ring inside had to be almost four ad a half carats. It was the one she'd designed during happier times. She started to cry, because she knew now that could never be. She turned to see Rick on his knee.

"I was going to wait for your birthday to do it, but since you've seen it…Phoebe, I fucked up. There's no easier way to say it. I fucked up, horribly. But I can't live without you. I've tried, it hurts way too much to do. I want you to change your mind. Ava was a low point in my life, and you're everything in me that's good. Please Bright Eyes, please…forgive me. And then let me ask you, will you marry me?"

The speech was impassioned. Phoebe could see the pain in his eyes over this whole thing. She wanted to believe that things would be normal again, because she tried to live without him, too. She smiled at him, then tossed the ring off the balcony.

"No. I won't marry you, Rick. I'll always have that niggling thought in the back of my head that you're with another woman. Remember one thing, I'm the best you'll ever have."

She said, throwing a picture of them off the balcony. And that's when it hit Rick. His relationship was over. And there was nothing he could to change it. He nodded and took his apartment key off of his key ring and left it on the table. He scrawled a quick note and left it, walking out.

_Your sins into me_

_Oh, my beautiful one, now_

_Your sins into me_

_As a rapturous voice escapes, I will tremble a prayer_

_And I'll beg for forgiveness_

_(Your sins into me) Your sins into…_

_(Your sins into me) Your sins into me_

_Oh, my beautiful one, now._

After she finished throwing all of his things off the balcony, she walked into the foyer and found the note that Rick had left her.

"_Here's my key. I'm sorry, for everything. My proposal is still on the table. I love you, Bright Eyes, and I'll make it up to you, I promise. Rick"_

And that's when she realized she just might have messed everything up…

-The end


End file.
